No Dad  Not Again: Part III Conclusion
by Betterbuddy
Summary: S7,S8,S9 spoilers. This is the aftermath of part 1 and 2, after Tony's father's wedding, Tony is forced to recover repressed memories of his mother's death during a murder investigation.
1. Chapter 1

"Do we have enough evidence to move in yet, sir?" Gibbs' voice became louder and stronger, as he discussed the current terror cell situation with Director Vance. Gibbs' continued to argue with Vance on his cell phone, as Tony continued to watch the apartment and their current assignment, which had now reached a month's time of surveillance. Without taking his eyes off the apartment, Tony noticed that Gibbs' was no longer arguing with Vance.

"So?" Tony asked without having to go into detail or make eye contact.

"We are stuck . . ._for_ a while. We need to catch them in the act." Gibbs shot back with notable frustration. Tony nodded without argument, but he let out a big sigh. After acknowledging Tony's frustration as well, Gibbs sat down next to him as they looked onto the apartment.

"Talked to your Dad lately, Tony?" Gibbs asked as he sipped his coffee and continued to look forward, as he sensed Tony's body next to him tense up at the question being asked.

"No." Tony answered softly. After a long uncomfortable silence, Tony finally started to open up. "When my father marries, he tends to forget about me, . . ._so_ we shouldn't have to deal with him for a while." Tony said with an awkward laugh, which made Gibbs grimace.

"Tony." Gibbs said with obvious irritation and concern.

"They have been kind of busy anyway. Something about transferring some property over that will now belong to my new step-mother." As Tony talked, Gibbs' thought back to the case details that seemed so cut-and-dry, but according to his very own Gibbs-rules, he knew that there was no such thing as a cut-and-dry case. The Gibbs' gut was telling him that he should look deeper into why Phoebe Bertucci felt the need to kill Tony's father, when she just wanted to be with him.

"Boss?" Tony said loudly in concern of what he was seeing in the apartment that they were watching.

"I see it, DiNozzo. Just keep recording." Gibbs replied in a cranky tone, as he continued to watch. A few minutes later Gibbs stood up and headed for the door to leave the room. "I am going out for some air. I will be right back."

"Boss?" Tony turned in concern, wondering if he should be going too.

"I am just going out for air. I am not going across the street."

Out in the hallway, Gibbs tried to get himself a safe distance away from where DiNozzo was, so there was no chance of him hearing Gibbs on his cellphone.

"Hey Abs," Gibbs said into the phone.

"Gibbs, what is happening!" Abby yelled in excitement, hoping that some progress was being made on their latest case.

"We are stuck here for a while Abs." Gibbs said, effectively shooting down any hopes that her Gibbs and her Three Musketeers would return.

"Abs, when you have time, could you look into some stuff for me?" Gibbs said. Knowing that she would not argue with him, Gibbs just continued.

"I would like you to look more into our DiNozzo case." Gibbs cringed and still whispered as he spoke. "I do not like how we left it. It just did not tie up right."

"What are you thinking, Gibbs?" Abby asked in concern and interest.

"Could you look into the backgrounds of Tony's stepmothers?" Gibbs asked, not confident that this was really necessary but needing a place to start. "Specifically, look into the current stepmother, Silvia, and the suspect - Phoebe Bertucci. Also, if you could look into whom Tony's first stepmother was. Tony's uncle made a comment that she killed his mother."

"What!" Abby couldn't help but yell out in shock. "Gibbs, that is terrible. Is there any truth to this?"

"I don't know, Abs. It has really been hard getting anything out of Tony or his father for that matter." Gibbs added. "Just whatever information you can get for me, Abs. DiNozzo does not need to know about this either." Gibbs added as he closed his phone. Gibbs turned to reenter the room. He found Tony pacing around the room talking on his cell phone.

"What? What? When did this happen?" Tony shook his head as he talked into the phone. He noticed Gibbs opened the door, which made him jump when he realized he had stopped watching the apartment. Gibbs slowly walked into the room, giving him a hard, disapproving, stare, as he walked over to the window. Tony gave a hard swallow knowing that a lecture was in his future.

"Is she okay?" Tony asked, still carrying on this conversation. "Well, when is it? Okay. All right. . .all right. Thanks for calling, Dad." Tony finished and quickly sat back down next to Gibbs.

"I'm sorry, Boss." Tony said painfully, as he returned to his seat almost out of breath. The lecture and head slap that Gibbs was about the give Tony was gone, when he learned that Tony had just spoken to his father.

"Everything all right?" Gibbs asked.

"No." Tony quickly said, having to take a deep breath to collect himself. "My dad said that Phoebe was killed in a car crash over the weekend." Tony shared with Gibbs.

After hearing the news, Gibbs closed moved closer to Tony treating him with a very intense and concerned Gibbs' stare. "Car crash?" Gibbs repeated in surprise and almost disgust in himself for waiting so long to reopen the case and inquire about Tony's stepmothers.

"Was it an accident?" Gibbs asked, not even believing what he was asking himself.

"I. . .I don't know yet." Tony said so unconvincingly and in such a way that convinced Gibbs immediately that he was lying. Gibbs turned his body and moved closer to Tony.

"Tony?" Gibbs said softly. Tony began to squirm from the pressure, as he fought the urge to bolt from the room.

"It might not have been an accident." Tony answered cautiously. Gibbs nodded, but then continued to give the Gibbs' judgmental stare to Tony waiting for more information from him.

"Boss. . .I can't." Tony finally stumbled out some words, hoping that Gibbs lose interest in this topic.

"Tony?" Gibbs repeated even softer than the first time, as he leaned over giving him a soft circular rub on his upper back and shoulder. As Gibbs' eyes pierced him, Tony felt the need to add the additionally information that his father provided on the phone. Tony swallowed hard. He looked at Gibbs, who had not moved and who still waited for an answer.

"This probably is not relevant." Tony added with a nervous little laugh, in hopes of convincing himself that this was the truth. "However. . ." Tony paused, closed his eyes a moment, and swallowed. Then he finally looked at Gibbs and finished the sentence. "My dad said that her car was run off the road. The car was run off the road in the same spot that my mother's. . ."Tony gave short pause as he still seemed to be processing the information. ". . . was. It was the same location." Tony tried to explain, but even his voice started to quiver as he said this. Gibbs gave a small nod and continued to regard Tony, watching his movements and facial expressions waiting for indications of just how upset he really was. Gibbs had some questions on the tip of his tongue but at the same time wondered if he could ever ask Tony these questions. As they sat there, Gibbs waited to follow Tony's lead. He seemed to be desperately trying to hide his agitation. Gibbs became increasing concerned about this situation, as he continued to watch Tony who was visibly becoming more distressed as they sat there in silence. Just when Gibbs thought that Tony was about to start to emotionally crumble from all this, Tony just stood up looked out their window for a moment and took a deep breath that seemed to expel all emotions from his body.

"I . . .would like to go to the funeral. _If_. . .if that is possible, Boss?" Tony looked down to avoid eye contact and grimaced at his own question. Without hesitation, Gibbs stood up and looked at him strongly, forcing eye contact with a very uncomfortable Tony.

"You go to the funeral." Gibbs responded wanting to say more, but seeing how Tony's behavior totally transformed in a matter of seconds, he tried to refocus on their stakeout.

As their shift ended and there seemed to be a low in activity, Ziva and McGee entered the room.

"Hey." Tony said as they entered, not hiding a long yawn.

"Good Morning, Tony." Ziva said with extra emphasis.

"Good Morning Gibbs." She said.

"Ziva. McGee." Gibbs said.

"Good Morning." McGee said to both of them.

"Hey McMorning." Tony regarded McGee.

"Did anything happen last night?" McGee asked them as he sat down near the equipment.

"Not enough." Tony answered shortly. Gibbs shot Tony a surprised and irritated look. Although Tony got quiet about his ex-stepmother's car accident, he did not need to be quiet about the case.

"We need more." Gibbs said trying to elaborate Tony's lack of detail. "Vance wants us to catch them in the act." Gibbs said in an angry tone.

"Catch them in the act. . .it will be too late. . . " McGee questioned the strategy of this but did not finish when he saw Gibbs' irritation.

"Good luck today. Don't forget that you have backup available now in the surveillance van downstairs." Gibbs added with a little concern for leaving half of his team.

"Yes Gibbs." Ziva nodded, recognizing his concern.

"Tony?" Gibbs turned to his senior field agent, who seemed to be in his own little world, still sitting near the window.

"Coming Boss." Tony quickly responded and followed him out of the room.

"So when is the funeral?" Gibbs asked as they walked toward the car.

"Uhh, I actually don't know yet Boss. My dad was supposed to get back to me." Tony answered as they got into the car.


	2. Chapter 2

"Boss, should I go? I mean. . .we are in the middle of a stakeout that involves a terrorist cell?" Tony asked in concern.

"You – are—going." Gibbs emphasized softly. "We are not the only team working on this." Gibbs added, after realizing that Tony was looking for a way out of attending the funeral. As they pulled up at the Navy Yard, Gibbs turned to Tony just as he let out a long, dragged out yawn.

"Go home DiNozzo!" Gibbs ordered. "Call your Dad. Get some sleep!" Gibbs ordered as he shook his head, looking at his Tony in concern.

"Yes Boss." Tony responded obediently.

"You too." Tony added with a smile. Gibbs continued to sit in the car, as he watched Tony get into his own car in the Navy Yard's parking lot. Gibbs then headed toward the building to talk to Vance and Abby.

**Abby's Lab**

"Abs?" Gibbs entered her lab to find her working at her desk computer.

"Gibbs!" Abby jumped up and gave him a big, long hug. "I miss you, Gibbs. It is like you guys don't work here anymore."

"Yeah." Gibbs shook his head in agreement. "Did you get a chance to. . ." Gibbs started to ask, as Abby quickly nodded and pulled Gibbs over to her Plasma screen.

"Some interesting stuff here, Gibbs." Abby said directly to Gibbs with an intense and solemn look." I do need to check a few more things out, specifically about ex-step-mother number one, which you will be interested to learn about. However, last night, right after you called about this, I got some details about Phoebe. She just died in a car accident, when she was being transported to another prison. The officers driving her were also killed, when the car was basically pushed over a guard rail on a forest road in Rhode Island. "

"Yes." Gibbs nodded in agreement, which surprised Abby. "DiNozzo got a call from his dad about that. He is planning to attend the funeral."

"Okay then." Abby added in surprise as she continued to type. "There really isn't much to add about her other than she was a recovering alcoholic, no children, and she is from a very rich family. I checked her phone records. She and Mr. DiNozzo spoke constantly for the years before and after they were married. They were only married for about four years." Abby added looking at Gibbs who was listening intently, but she noted how visibly tired he was.

"Gibbs?" She looked at him with concern.

Gibbs smiled noticing her concern. "Go on Abs." He added with a smile and nod.

"Mr. DiNozzo's second wife is definitely the most interesting." Abby turned to Gibbs with a big smile. "Always suspect the ex, huh?" Abby imitated a typical Tony DiNozzo phrase. She started to laugh, but noticed that Gibbs looked increasingly more concerned at the concept. Abby brought up her picture on the plasma screen for Gibbs.

"Her name is Alda Bennett. She is a fifty-nine year old, who came from a wealthy family of immigrants that moved to the United States in 1962. She married a very wealthy businessman by the name of Albert Brown in 1975. However, she was disowned by her family after the marriage failed a year later. Her divorce was finalized in January 1977, she started dating some very rich and powerful men along the east coast. However, the millionaire died in a car crash in November 1976 before the divorce was finalized, and she also managed somehow to collect on her first ex-husband's life insurance policy." Abby continued, and Gibbs listened intently.

"This had to be around the time that Tony's mother died." Abby hesitated a moment. "In November 1978, she married Tony's dad. " Abby explained, looking over at a very quiet Gibbs who was quietly processing the information, as he continued to stare at the plasma.

"Now, I have lost track of her after that divorce. She made out really well financially from the life insurance policy that she was able to cash in after the millionaire died. Just from both of the divorces from the millionaire and from Tony's dad, she collected a lot of money, but then she literally fell of the face of the earth." Abby stated with a worrisome tone. "Abby's tone became increasingly stressed from the information that she was laying out for Gibbs. Gibbs finally broke his silence, as he continued to stare motionless at the screen.

"You mentioned that her first millionaire husband was in a car crash." Gibbs started to say, than he stopped almost scared of his own thoughts. "Do you have anything more on that?" He closed his eyes and cursed at himself, waiting for Abby to answer, but already knowing what the answer would be in his gut.

"Uhhmmmm." Abby refocused on seeking that information, as she typed away at her computer. "Yes. His car ran off the ro. . ." She started to say but stopped. Gibbs turned to face her. Abby was carefully reading her computer screen with her jaw dropped.

"Abs?" Gibbs turned to face her.

"I am sorry Gibbs." She swallowed hard as she collected herself. "Well. . .it seems." Abby started to say with her best professional voice. "It seems that he died the same way and in the same place. . ." Abby started to say, but her tone changed when she saw Gibbs's reaction, looking up to his left, if processing the information she had not said yet. "He died in the same place as Phoebe Bertucci." Gibbs let out an audible sigh and looked up at the ceiling.

"Drove off the road and through a guard rail on a forest road?" Gibbs added. Abby nodded.

"What does this mean Gibbs?" Abby asked.

"We need to re-open this case." Gibbs answered with a sigh. "Three different cars, run off the road, through a guard rail like that in the same location." Gibbs restated his thoughts in a strong angry tone, as he started to head for Vance's office.

"Three?" Abby asked, questioning Gibbs and wondering if the lack of sleep was getting to him. Gibbs stopped dead in his tracks and turned toward Abby.

"Tony got a call from his dad this morning. His dad told him that Phoebe had died in the same location that his mother did."

"Three cars. The same location and in the same manner." Gibbs restated in disbelief of what they had discovered. "What year did the millionaire die in the car crash?" He asked.

"November 1976." Abby quickly answered. Thinking ahead of Gibbs' thought patterns, Abby quickly began a search for the car accident that killed Tony's mother. Gibbs' stepped back over to the plasma to see and read an old article on the car accident.

"Eight year old son of Anthony DiNozzo Senior survives crash. Paddington died two days later in a hospital from her injuries, as a result of the car crash. Alda Bennett is being questioned regarding the crash, but there is no proof that she was involved." Gibbs mumbled just key details as he read. "Nothing said about her being drunk. . .hmm." Gibbs added, thinking back to Tony's earlier comment.


	3. Chapter 3

"So November 1976, January 1977, and now 2011." Abby concluded, as she processed the details in front of her. Gibbs turned toward Abby but did not look directly at her, as he continued to process the information and prepare himself for talking with Vance. Abby felt her stomach drop, as she thought of everything that Tony would have to deal with. She watched Gibbs' internal struggle of how to handle this situation. Gibbs finally threw up his arms in defeat, as he headed for Vance's office. He turned to a teary eyed Abby.

"Thanks Abs. We did need to do this." He said softly, as he kissed her on the cheek. "Good work." Abby nodded as he left the room.

**Vance's office**

"So you are saying that you do not want us to get involved in this!" Gibbs shot back at Vance. "This is one of _**your**_ agents, Leon."

"But is Agent DiNozzo asking us for our help here? Does he want this case opened?" Vance said intensely, trying not to match the hostility coming from Gibbs. "This case is _what_ . . . thirty-three or almost thirty-four years old? Come on Gibbs!"

"If he was a Marine or Navy Officer, there would be an investigation." Gibbs angrily yelled back at Vance. "But, you won't allow an investigation when it involves one of your own agents."

"Wait a minute here, Gibbs." Vance yelled back. "I am the one that handed you this case to begin with. I told you that the only witness was Peter DiNozzo, and I knew there was a possibility that he was a relative of Agent DiNozzo's. We took care of our end of the case. The shooter was found at the scene.

"And now she is dead." Gibbs shook his head in obvious disbelief, as Vance was being so difficult. "I will admit it is an interesting connection that you and Ms. Sciuto found. However, unless DiNozzo specifically asks you to look into this or you find a little more than just the fact that there were three car accidents in one location.

"We have a witness to one of the accidents." Gibbs said.

"Who?" Vance shot back irritated but also curious.

"DiNozzo." Gibbs shot back.

"What?" Vance returned a confused look.

"He survived one of the three crashes." Gibbs stated. "And, according to the article I read earlier, he was the one that implicated this Alda Bennett.

"If that is true, then why wasn't she arrested then?" Vance said angrily. "And, why the hell would his father go on to later marry her?" Gibbs sighed, when he did not have a response. Frustrated, he simply looked down from not having a response to Vance's point. Vance finally relaxed from his battle from the force known as Leroy Jethro Gibbs. He turned around and tried to digest all of the information as well as acknowledge the concern that Gibbs presented. Gibbs shook his head and approached the door to leave.

"Gibbs!" Vance shouted. Gibbs stopped and turned toward Director Vance. He shook his head and sighed.

"If you really want to get us involved in this. . ." Vance said in a soft and defeated tone. "Are you sure that you want to do this? To my knowledge, DiNozzo has never indicated to us that his mother was murdered and that he wanted the death to be investigated."

"No, he hasn't." Gibbs agreed.

"How do you even intend to run this case, with DiNozzo right there?" Vance tried to show Gibbs' his point of view and his reasoning for being against this investigation from the start. "What if he objects to this? What if this drives him to leave NCIS? You cannot possibly anticipate the outcome of all of this."

"Put a killer behind bars, maybe?" Gibbs was angered simply for having to justify this, but he did see Vance's points clearly. "I would at least like to find evidence of a connection between Alda Bennett's first husband's death and our suspect, Phoebe Bertucci."

"All right, Gibbs. All right." Vance agreed feeling he had little choice but to agree. "Now, what about the stakeout?"

"We still have nothing that solid." Gibbs said with a frustrated tone.

"I'll assign another team to the stakeout, but I still want your team involved." Vance stated. "Your team will just be assigned morning hours between 5am to 12pm, so just rotate your team's schedule.

"Yessss, Sir." Gibbs nodded in agreement and appreciation. Gibbs excited the room, trying to plan out his strategy for how to approach this sensitive case.

**Squad Room**

Gibbs sat at his desk looking up contact information for Tony's father on the internet, silently cursing himself for not just asking Abby. As he slid the keyboard forcefully forward in frustration, Abby came shuffling into the squad room.

"Gibbs!" Abby shouted as she approached. Gibbs was relieved to see her and to take a break from the computer.

"Yeah." Gibbs responded.

"I thiiiiiiink that I found her." Abby said excitedly.

"Found her?" Gibbs titled his head, really feeling the effects of not sleeping well for the last month.

"Alda Bennett." Abby stated. Gibbs treated her with his bulging eyes and nearly dropped jaw.

"Where?" Gibbs slowly stood up in amazement. Abby handed him a phone number and a contact address.

"Thank you, Abby." Gibbs said strongly. He gave her a kiss and walked out of the squad room.

As Gibbs returned home, he discovered that he had missed a call from Tony. "Hey Boss, the wake and funeral are tomorrow, so my dad wanted me to fly out tonight. I will fly back tomorrow evening. I hope that is okay, Boss. I did talk to Director Vance about this too, and he also said it was fine. He also told me that another team was being added to our stakeout. Did you know about that one? Talk to you later." After hearing the message, Gibbs planned his strategy now that he knew exactly where Tony's father would be.


	4. Chapter 4

**Next Day**

Tony made every effort to avoid his father at the wake and funeral because he could not handle seeing his new pregnant stepmother with him. He repeatedly looked at his watch and cell phone hoping that the day was almost over, so that he could fly back to Washington D.C. He watched his father and new stepmother from a distance, as they talked with some of Phoebe's family. Tony came close to removing himself safely out of the room, when he was taken aback by Gibbs entering the room. Tony blinked hard in disbelief.

"Boss?" Tony said more than a little surprised. Gibbs turned to face him. Gibbs grabbed Tony by the upper arm and started to gently push him out of the room.

"Tony." Gibbs started to explain cautiously. "This has turned into a murder investigation. Your father did not do anything. However, I did need to ask him some questions. All right?"

"Really - a murder investigation? Who is the suspect?" Tony asked in concern.

"No one here right now. Look, you need to stay out of this investigation. You are too close to those involved. I'll need to speak to your cousin again. Is he here too?"

"Uhh." Tony struggled to remember as he spun in a circle looking around the room. "Yes, I did talk with him earlier."

"Good." Gibbs replied. He gave Tony a pat on the shoulder. "Don't you worry about a thing." Gibbs tried to reassure him as much as possible as he headed toward DiNozzo Senior. Feeling whiplashed from this, Tony sat down on the couch in the lobby watching as some of his relatives came in and left the wake.

"Gibbs." DiNozzo Senior said in his charming tone. "What brings you here? I am not sure where . . ._**Junior**_ is." He said with notable anger in his tone, when he could not even see him in the distance anymore.

"I pulled Tony out in the lobby. I came here to talk to you. Let's go somewhere more private. Here, this way, sir." Gibbs responded by directing DiNozzo Senior to a small office. He closed the door behind him.

"What is this about Gibbs?" DiNozzo Senior asked in an irate tone, seeing the irony of being interrogated once again by Gibbs.

"As you know, NCIS was sent here originally to investigate the death of the Marine that was killed by Ms. Bertucci. Now, NCIS as well as the FBI are investigating the death of Ms. Bertucci. It seems that the way that she died, specifically the way her car was driven off the road, fits a pattern that has warranted a further investigation into her death." As Gibbs explained, Mr. DiNozzo's demeanor changed. He recognized the importance of the investigation and in a sense was relieved that an investigation was taking place.

"Yes." DiNozzo Senior agreed with Gibbs' words and understood why Gibbs wanted to speak to him.

"Now, Tony is sitting this one out for now. He does not know the specifics of this case yet, and I would like to keep it that way." Gibbs felt no harm in fibbing slightly here. "Abby was able to track three cases where a driver was driven off the road, through a guard rail on the same forest rode and in the same location. These incidents occurred once in 1976, then in January 1977, and now 2011."

DiNozzo Senior gave a haunted response to this statement. "What?" He said. "Yes, I know that my wife died in a car crash back in 1977 after driving through a guard rail, which is also how Phoebe just died. However, who died in 1976? And, why exactly do you think there is a connection?"

"The person that died in 1976 was a businessman by the name of Albert Brown." Gibbs watched suspiciously for a reaction, as he said the name. When he did not get the response he was hoping for, he added more information. "He was your ex-wife, Alda Bennett's first husband." Gibbs watched as Tony's father's very complexion turned pale. Gibbs gave him some time to process the information.

"Alda." Tony Senior repeated the name with some anger and disgust that Gibbs had never seen coming from him before. "Is she your suspect? Do you think she really killed them?" He asked. Gibbs could see the emotions that were overtaking him the more that he learned.

"Mr. DiNozzo?" Gibbs tried to redirect him, as he wondered if he had made the right decision by telling him everything. "We really need more proof that she did this, before we can arrest her. Is there anything that you remember that could help this case?" Gibbs asked shaking his head back and forth, as he thought back to the article that he had read, stating that Alda Bennett was questioned about the crash.

"Well, yes. . ._**Junior**_. . .He was only eight years old at the time." DiNozzo Senior said rolling his eyes in amusement and with a totally disgusted tone. "But, he kept insisting that he saw the woman that drove his mother off of the rode. He kept drawing the car, drawing the woman, and he even had written the license plate number of the car for me. He kept drawing this over and over again, sometimes three to four times a day. His teacher and the school kept calling me in to tell me that Junior did nothing but draw these pictures all day at school. I did give one of the pictures to the police detectives handling the crash investigation. They did identify the owner of the vehicle as Alda, and she did look a lot like the picture in some ways that Junior tried to draw. However, she had alibis. The police checked her out, and they did not arrest her." DiNozzo Senior explained. "Sooo, after the police basically told me that. . .that this could _**not**_ be possible, I had to get Junior to stop drawing those pictures all day at school. I exercised some tough love, some hard, painful, discipline on him that he would never forget to make sure he stopped. He stopped drawing the pictures, and he has not mentioned the details of the accident since. I mean I even married Alda a couple years later, and he never mentioned anything." The pent up anger was eating at Gibbs. However, Gibbs refrained himself from exhibiting any form of emotion toward Mr. DiNozzo.

"All right. Thank you very much for that information, Mr. DiNozzo." Gibbs found every word that he uttered to be agonizing. "NCIS and the FBI are now investigating these crashes further and Ms. Bennett will be brought in for questioning." Gibbs stated, grinding his teeth and struggling to maintain his calm composure with Mr. DiNozzo. "Once again, I would also like to keep your son out of this investigation for now." Gibbs thanked him again, shook his hand, and they both left the room. Gibbs felt the need to get as far away from Tony's father as possible, so he practically ran out of the building almost knocking over Tony, who was still in the lobby, in the process.

"Whoa, Boss." Tony said, catching his balance after colliding with Gibbs. "You all right?" Tony asked with a nervous laugh.

"Yeah. I am sorry Tony." Gibbs said with a light smile, grabbing onto Tony's shoulders to make sure they both had their balances.

"You okay, Boss?" Tony asked in concern, now that he had gotten a better look at Gibbs.

"No. I mean yeah—I am fine. I wanted to make sure I saw your cousin. Is he still here?" Gibbs asked, hoping that he effectively distracted Tony. Tony directed Gibbs over to his cousin, Peter DiNozzo.

"Thanks Tony. Are you doing okay?" Gibbs asked in concern, looking Tony over. He was looking at Tony in a different way after talking to Tony's father.

"Yeah, I am fine, Boss." Tony laughed softly. He then stepped away, knowing that Gibbs wanted him to stay away from the investigation.

"Ah, Agent Gibbs." Pete DiNozzo said, as he approached. "Can I help you, sir?"

"Yes, I just had another question in regards to what you actually heard and saw." Gibbs explained. "Is there any chance that you saw another woman as well? Were there three people in that room?" He asked.

"I guess. . .that it is possible. I heard a woman's voice." He said. "At the time, I thought it was only one woman, but I could have been wrong. I really could not tell through the peep hole either."

"Did the voice of the woman remind you of anyone?" Gibbs tried to carefully phrase the question. "Did it sound like Phoebe's voice or did it sound like someone else you might have known?"

"I am sorry. I am not sure. I did recognize the voice, but I just assumed that it was just Phoebe's." He answered.

Gibbs nodded, accepting the response although he was hoping that Peter DiNozzo would just say that it sounded like Alda Bennett, so he did not have to get Tony involved now. After contacting the hotel where the Marine was killed for any video footage they might have had of that hallway, Gibbs then returned to NCIS headquarters awaiting Tony's return. He dialed the number for Dr. Rachel Cranston's office.

**NCIS Conference Room**

"What is this about, Agent Gibbs?" Dr. Cranston asked as they entered the conference room together. You mentioned the details of the case, but I do not understand what exactly I should do to help?"

"The part that I left out over the phone was that we do have a witness." Gibbs hesitated hoping to emphasis the importance of this. "It is Tony."

"Tony? How exactly was he a witness to this?" She asked in confusion. "His mother was one of the victims driven off the road, and he was in the car at the time. He is a witness."

"His mother? No, Gibbs, Tony was only eight years old when she died." Dr. Cranston could not share Gibbs' optimism.

"He was in the car. He drew a picture of the crash site, the woman in the car, the car that crashed into them, and the license plate number." Gibbs added. "I was told he drew this picture three to four times a day right after her death."

"Well, that is. . ._is_ impressive for an eight year old to recall that many details. But, impressive as that might be. . ." Dr. Cranston shook her head in disagreement. "this happened 33 years ago. And, even if he does manage to remember all of this, what is the goal here Gibbs?"

"To see if he repressed anything else?" Gibbs added. "His father married her."

"Tony's father _**married**_ the woman that might have killed his mother?" Dr. Cranston was disgusted beyond words.

"Do you think you could at least get him started? Then, maybe I can take over?" Gibbs asked.

"This isn't an interrogation! I don't know Gibbs. Every time that I have talked with Tony, he has initiated a discussion about his mother and—openly shared-some detail about this mother's death. He does seem to want to talk about it, but then he redirects the subject." She shared with Gibbs, wondering if she is stepping well outside her doctor-patient privileges here.

"Why do you think that is?" Gibbs asked curiously. "That is how is with me also with anything traumatic or emotionally tolling. He never or at least very rarely shows raw emotion. It is always covered with an overly obvious lie, a joke, or distraction of some kind."

"You have met his father. Do you think that he was the type of father that encouraged Tony to share his feelings? Do they communicate well?" Dr. Cranston said bluntly. "What about you yourself, Gibbs? Did your own father promote you to cry or share your feelings? Fathers often do push their sons to suppress their emotions and to be - what they believe to be – are real men. I am just assuming here, and I could be wrong here, but there is a chance that Tony was never even allowed the opportunity to grieve after his mother's death." Dr. Cranston added. "Repression is a defense mechanism for traumatic experiences such as this."

"Oh, I think you are more than right on that one, Doc." Gibbs mumbled in frustration. "And, guess what dear-old dad told me today? When Tony kept drawing that picture of the crash that killed his mother, his father admitted to me that he beat Tony to make sure that he never drew it again."

"Oh Gibbs." Dr. Cranston huffed in frustration. "I hope you are not relying solely on Tony's testimony here.

"His father did give one of the pictures to the police though. And to my surprise, when I opened the case file, I did get a copy of it." Dr. Cranston raised her eyebrows, as Gibbs pulled it out. "But, the suspect had alibis and the police believed her story over Tony's."

"All right Gibbs." Dr. Cranston sighed. "We will try this. But, I will repeat myself here. I think you need to find more supporting evidence beyond AN EIGHT YEAR OLD-Tony's memories, from 33 years ago."

**NCIS headquarters**

"Good Morning." Tony said as he entered the squad room.

"Morning, Tony." Gibbs responded as he checked his emails. "So what do we have planned for this morning, while Ziva and McGee are still doing surveillance?

"You are due for another psych evaluation with Dr. Cranston. She is upstairs in the conference room, waiting for you." Gibbs said directly, looking up from his computer to observe Tony's reaction. Tony's jaw dropped, hoping that Gibbs was just messing with him. "Go on." Gibbs said softly moving his head in the direction of the conference room, as he noticed the look in Tony's eyes pleading with him to help him get out of doing this. Gibbs looked away for a moment, but he noticed that Tony still had not moved.

"Tony" Gibbs gave a sharp warning that he meant business.

"Boss, come on, why do I need psych evaluation-I just had one?" Tony stated, almost as a whine.

"Well." Gibbs offered but did not finish. "Come on." Gibbs extended his arm to latch on to Tony's shoulder as he personally guided Tony up to the conference room. Tony let Gibbs direct him, as Gibbs opened the door for him and lightly pushed Tony into the room, where Dr. Cranston stood waiting for him.

"Hey, oh ah hey." Tony said with an awkward little, nervous, laugh. Gibbs kept his arm on Tony's back waiting for Tony to just submit and sit down. After Tony's little failed resistance, he finally sat down at the very end of the table. He took a deep breath and accepted his future.

"Well Tony. It has been a month since I have seen you. How are you? What is new?" She asked him to try to break the ice. Gibbs continued to stay in the spot right behind Tony to make sure that he would respond to her.

"Ah, a few new things here and there I am dealing with. How are you?" he asked.

"Thanks for asking Tony." Dr. Cranston talked briefly about her most recent vacation with her family to try to relax Tony.

Gibbs continued to stay a quiet figure in the room, making sure that Tony would cooperate. Dr. Cranston sat next to Tony near his left side. Tony took in how Dr. Cranston was hesitating and how Gibbs seemed to be watching him so closely. After considering the timing of this psych evaluation, Tony considered the possibilities of why Gibbs and Dr. Cranston pulled him into the conference room.

"You want to ask me about my mother's death, don't you?" Tony asked so softly that they both nearly missed the question.


	5. Chapter 5

"What?" Dr. Cranston said in such surprise that she almost needed to hear him repeat the question to believe it. She took in Tony's demeanor as he avoided eye contacted and he looked visibly defeated.

"Tony?" Gibbs asked. He was equally surprised as Dr. Cranston. He slowly moved closer to Tony at the table. After a long, uncomfortable silence, Tony finally repeated himself but still avoided eye contact.

"You want to ask me about my mother's death. The case had to be re-activated when Phoebe Bertucci was killed. She died the same way as my mother." Tony added. Gibbs slowly slid into the chair next to Tony and opposite Dr. Cranston, who he kept exchanging concerned glances with. Dr. Cranston also gave Gibbs a warning glance that—reminded him that this is not the interrogation room.

"Why do you think that is, Tony?" She asked, hoping that he would look at her.

"It is suspicious. My dad thought it might be investigated again. And, I was a witness." Tony answered.

"Yes, you were." She confirmed. "Can you tell us what happened?"

"When we were driving down a forest road, a black car hit us on the driver's side of the car. The car continued to push us into the guard rail, and then we were pushed over the guard rail going down a hill."

"You said a black car. Do you remember who was driving it?" She asked.

"No, I never saw who it was." Tony answered.

"Did you catch the license plate?" She asked. Dr. Cranston watched Tony as he smirked and lightly laughed.

"No, I did not catch that either." Tony answered. "I wasn't a cop just yet." He said sarcastically.

"You don't remember seeing the driver or the license plate number?" Gibbs questioned in confusion, looking to Dr. Cranston.

"Are you sure?" Dr. Cranston asked again, watching Tony consider the question again.

"Do you recognize this?" She asked him as she pulled out the drawing from the police file. Tony's whole demeanor changed. He looked as if he was hit with a wave, as he stood up from his chair and moved backwards away from the table, as if the picture was dangerous. They both stood up after him.

"Tony? You all right?" Gibbs asked as he followed him over to the wall.

"Yeah. . ." Tony answered. "I don't know what just happened." He said with a deep breath.

"How about a short break?" Gibbs asked more to Dr. Cranston rather than Tony. Dr. Cranston shook her head in disagreement. Luckily, Tony was too distracted to remember the question anyway. They watched as he walked back over to the table to pick up the picture.

"You know. . .this reminds me of a movie that I once saw." Tony started to explain jokingly. Thinking that Tony was attempting another distraction technique, Gibbs treated him with an annoyed look.

"DiNozzo!" Gibbs yelled, getting ready to give a head slap.

"What movie does it remind you of Tony?" Dr. Cranston asked to both of their surprises.

"It reminds me of this movie where this money-hungry woman would marry these wealthy men. The first one that she married, she killed, and then was able to steal his life-insurance policy after faking her identity. Then she killed a man's wife to collect money from a secret bank account that her family didn't know about. After that, this lady actually married that woman's husband. However, with that guy, she had met her match because he was actually a con-artist himself. He was actually conning her out of her stolen money, so she finally gave up and they got divorced."

"Tony?" Gibbs said in disbelief. "That wasn't a movie. That really happened."

"Wha—What?" Tony stuttered.

"Come here, Tony." Gibbs motioned his finger toward the chair. "Sit back down." Gibbs ordered.

Tony obeyed by sitting back down in the chair and looked to Gibbs for instructions on what he was to do next. He turned to watch Dr. Cranston sit back down next to him.

"Did. . ." Dr. Cranston started to say, but stopped to rephrase her question. "Who. . .who taught you to do that?" She asked in curiosity.

"Do what?" Tony asked, looking to Gibbs for what he missed.

"Lose yourself in movies?" She answered. "Who pushed these movies on you? That is twice now that you have done this. Specifically, when talking about your mother, you bring up a movie."

"My dad's sister." He answered, surprised by the question. "My dad a little bit too."

Dr. Cranston nodded. "Well you just described several details about Alda. That wasn't a movie."

"Alda?" Tony questioned her. "I thought we were talking about Phoebe and my mother?" They watched Tony start to process this.

"You sure you don't remember who was driving the car?" Dr. Cranston asked. They watched as Tony's head seemed to be spinning. He looked down at the table and pressed his arm against his forehead as support. They watched as he lifted his head slightly, so that he could look at the drawing sitting on the table again. He forced his eyes shut hard and then looked back up at them, only to look right back at the picture again. Gibbs noticed how he was struggling with this, so he started to stand up.

"I am going to leave the two of you alone to talk for a while." Gibbs said, as he addressed Tony, who seemed really distraught at the idea that Gibbs was now leaving him. Gibbs set his hand down on Tony's shoulder to give him a soft pat as he left the room, taking in how Tony started to nervously fidget as he left.

"Tony." Dr. Cranston tried to redirect him and relax him again. Tony jumped at her voice but turned to face her again. "I want to just try something." As Dr. Cranston said that, Tony's stomach turned to knots. He swallowed hard and gave a small smile, as he listened for instructions.

**Abby's Lab**

"Gibbs!" Abby yelled when he entered the room. "What is happening-you haven't been answering your cell phone." Gibbs was taken aback by her comment. He grabbed his cell phone and checked.

"McGee called? I never heard my cell." Gibbs said in surprise. He was about to redial, when Abby interjected.

"They stopped the terrorist cell. The cell was actually in the motions of carrying out a plot. McGee and Ziva joined the other team in the surveillance van to apprehend them. They are all on their way in now." Abby explained. Gibbs shook his head, disgusted that he missed the whole thing and that he did not even hear his cell phone ring.

"So what is happening with Tony?" Abby asked in concern. "Is he here?"

"Yeah, Abs. I just left him with Dr. Cranston." Gibbs explained a little frazzled at the same time.

"Oh." Abby responded with concern for Tony and concern for his having to have another session with the psychologist. "Tony has had to spend more time with her then any of us this year." Abby pointed out, which Gibbs had not realized until now.

"Yeah." Gibbs responded somewhat sorrowfully. "Just a few things, I was hoping that you would check on, Abs.

"Absolutely!" She redirected herself to her computer.

"Tony mentioned. . ." Gibbs started to say but did not have the words to explain in this manner. "Well, could you check if Tony's mother had a "secret bank account" that was emptied out after she was killed?" Gibbs said with some disbelief in his tone. "And, could you check if our latest victim, Ms. Bertucci, had something similar?"

"I am checking with Tony's mother now." Abby said. "Oh well, I don't know if this would be called a secret account because it came right up here. However, she had an account based in England, which was emptied out just five days after her death. Then it was closed out completely, by the executor of her estate a couple of months after. That is suspicious." Gibbs looked at her and nodded. "The latest victim. . .uh, wow, there is a police report here that while she was in the hospital, immediately after being shot two of her credit cards were stolen and maxed out. And, yes there was an account cleaned out yesterday."

"Good job, Abs. I will contact those banks for more information." Gibbs smiled as he was about to walk off.

"I can do that for you Gibbs." Abby offered. Gibbs leaned over to kiss her. "Is there something else?"

"I need to talk to McGee and Ziva about arresting Alda Bennett, now that we know where she is."

**NCIS Conference Room**

After being debriefed about their arresting of the terror cell, Ziva and McGee learned about the other case from Gibbs. Gibbs watched as they left to arrest her. Then, Gibbs knocked on the door, and he walked in to find that no one was actually talking in the conference room. Dr. Cranston smiled at him as he walked in. She headed over to Gibbs, and the stepped outside the room.

"What is going on, Doc?" Gibbs said in confusion.

"Well, I am having him re-draw that picture that he drew so many times when he was a boy. I had taken away the other one, and then I handed him some paper." She looked at him confidently. Gibbs slowly started to nod in understanding. "At first he was rather resistant and sat motionless, but he has been drawing now for about ten minutes. If nothing else, maybe this will jog some of his memories for you Gibbs." Gibbs nodded and decided not to reenter the conference room with the doctor. Gibbs jumped at the sound of his cellphone ringing.

"Yeah, Gibbs." Gibbs answered. "Whoa, what, slow down McGee. What did you find on her wall? Did you arrest her though? Okay, okay, just take as many pictures of it as you can." Gibbs closed his phone shaking his head at the information from McGee. Gibbs turned to go into the conference room.

"Gibbs." Dr. Cranston said. She said handing him the updated picture, police sketch, of the crime that Tony drew. In many ways it resembled the picture that he drew when he was eight. This was much easier to understand. It was Tony's point of view from inside the car, with a black car smashing into their driver's side. A woman, in many ways resembling a young Alda, was pictured driving the car with the license plate number, which was also consistent with what eight-year-old Tony had previously written down. However, the picture was much more detailed and consistent with the real crime scene photos that Gibbs had seen in the case file. Gibbs sat down next to Tony who now was very quiet, distant, and just appeared defeated. Gibbs wondered if Tony even knew that he was there.

"Tony?" Gibbs finally whispered. Tony just turned and looked at him, emotionless and quiet. "Are you all right?"

"Yeah, Boss." Tony finally said quietly, as he turned his head back and looked down at the table. Gibbs gave him his best analytical stare, but he could not figure out the type of emotional state that Tony was in right now.

"Gibbs." Dr. Cranston caught his attention and gave a signal that they should talk outside.

"We do have enough now." Gibbs said without giving details. "Is he going to be all right though?" Gibbs asked, now wondering after seeing the state that Tony was in, if this was all worth getting Tony involved.

"I have a feeling. He does remember everything now." Dr. Cranston explained, expressing her distaste of the idea. "He has not gone into details yet. However, that picture might have finally done it." Gibbs nodded in agreement.

"Does his father know what is going on?" Dr. Cranston asked. Gibbs was caught off guard by that question.

"Uh, yes, I did talk with him." Gibbs offered.

"Maybe. . ." Dr. Cranston started to say. "This would be a good time for him to come to D.C. and see his son." She suggested, as she returned to the room. Gibbs could hear that the suspect arrived, as Ziva and Alda were in a screaming match downstairs. By the time that Gibbs got down stairs, Alda had been brought to the interrogation room.

"Gibbs, you have to see these photos." She said to him, as McGee had already started to set up the plasma.

"Wow." Gibbs could not think of another word to use.

"The entire wall was covered with newspaper clippings, pictures, photographs, and everything concerning Anthony DiNozzo Senior." Ziva explained. "There were a few pictures of our Tony. However, he was with his father in those photos. Alda Bennett is definitely obsessed with Tony's father."

**NCIS Conference Room**

Gibbs again began to enter the room to find them sitting at the table not talking again.

"Well Doc." Gibbs said. "Why don't you go home? I'm taking Tony home with me." Tony seemed to miss the announcement. Dr. Cranston walked over to Gibbs with a concerned look.

"Thanks Doc." He said to her. "Good job." She shook her head with worry as she looked at Gibbs on her way out. Gibbs got the unspoken message.

"Tony?" Gibbs repeated twice. Finally, Tony turned.

"Yeah Boss." Tony responded, as he seemed to snap back to reality. "Where did. . .where?"

"I just sent her home, Tony." Gibbs watched Tony with concern. "That is where we need to go."


	6. Chapter 6

"Oh, right. . .coming Boss." Tony got up to follow Gibbs.

**Gibbs' House**

After finishing the pizza, they were watching an old cowboy movie on television. Tony seemed to doze off almost immediately when it started. After repeatedly struggling to stay awake, Tony said he should really go home.

"No, why don't you just stay here tonight." Gibbs just made a gesture toward the bedroom.

"Oh, okay, sure. Thanks Boss." Tony responded to the offer, which was too quick and easy for Gibbs to accept as normal.

Gibbs aroused around 5 am, surprised that he had slept that long without making a little check on Tony. As he approached the bedroom, he could hear Tony walking around the room. Gibbs stood outside the bedroom door for a moment, trying to figure out what Tony was doing. Gibbs determined that Tony had to be walking or pacing in circles. Gibbs heard Tony's footsteps heading towards the door, which caused him to recoil a few steps to the bathroom. Tony jumped when he saw Gibbs standing there by the bathroom.

"Oh, hey Boss." Tony said surprised. He quickly lowered his head and rubbed his eyes hard. Gibbs could not see his face in the dark real well, but Gibbs knew that he had to be crying.

"You first." Gibbs ordered Tony as he pointed his head toward the bathroom.

"Uh, thanks Boss." Tony hurried into the bathroom turning on the light. Gibbs could now see how bloodshot his eyes were. When Tony exited the bathroom, he was surprised to see Gibbs still standing there almost waiting for him. Tony continued to struggle to keep his eyes clear.

"Come with me Tony." Gibbs said as he guided him back into the living room. They both sat back down on the couch. Gibbs regarded Tony with concern, which Tony sensed as Gibbs continued to watch him. From getting the Gibbs' stare and with his own difficulty keeping his eyes clear, Tony started to shift uncomfortably.

"I just can remember it so clearly now." Tony admitted to Gibbs. "This was thirty-three years ago." Gibbs nodded from Tony's comment. "It is like it happened yesterday."

"I am sorry, Tony." Gibbs made sure that Tony was looking at him when he said it. Tony nodded acknowledging Gibbs' need to give an apology and break one of his own rules. Although Tony no longer was hiding his face from Gibbs or fighting back the tears that seemed to form, he did fight to maintain his composure in front of him.

"You need to grieve, Tony." Gibbs finally said, as he watched Tony's internal struggles. "Do you want to see your father?" Gibbs asked, considering the suggestion that Dr. Cranston made.

"No." Tony answered more sharply than he intended.

"I mean. . .I can't right now, Boss." Tony said much calmer but still forcefully.

"He told me what he did." Gibbs said without elaborating. Tony looked back up at Gibbs, just realizing that Gibbs had a conversation with his father about all of this. "You should have been allowed to grieve."

Tony started to remember back to when his mother died, and his father, as a single parent, did not know how to handle him.

"Boss . . ." Tony started to defend his father to Gibbs, but Gibbs gave him such a sharp look that he stopped. "Yes Boss."

"So. . ." Tony swallowed hard before asking the question. "You arrested her today, then?" Tony asked slowly not knowing the details of anything that happened outside of the conference room.

"Yeah, she was arrested." Gibbs was reluctant to give Tony any more information than that right now. Gibbs noticed how quiet Tony got again. He noticed that Tony was fidgeting again and seemed to be struggling to remember something, but then he buried his head in his hands for a moment. Gibbs wondered if Tony was ready to just melt down and start sobbing. Before Gibbs was able to move, Tony popped his head back up and looked at him.

"You know." Tony started to say. Gibbs was surprised by his completely changed, calm, demeanor. Gibbs looked to Tony waiting for him to finish. "She was the one that pushed my dad so hard to send me to boarding school. I really barely knew her though." After saying that, Tony just looked to his side angrily. Gibbs lifted his eyebrows and nodded from Tony's realization, but he started to get more concerned as Tony seemed to be focusing more on the suspect rather than processing the recently resurfaced details of his mother's death.

"Tony." Gibbs said sharply. "She has been arrested, and she is going to jail for a long time." Gibbs tried to reassure Tony and giving him a warning not to preoccupy himself with this.

"Boss, nothing has changed here for me." Tony stood up and started to pace as he ranted in frustration. "My mother is still dead. My father never believed me when I said I knew who killed her. My father and I stopped communicating after my mother's death. And, I still grew up in boarding school. What has really changed here?" Tony yelled.

"It's closure." Gibbs calmly tried to interject, watching Tony, whose anxiety level seemed to be intensifying. "The rest are just memories." Gibbs repeated the same line he used with Dr. Cranston regarding Kate's murder.

"I feel like the accident happened yesterday." Tony continued to rant. "I can't get the images out of my head. I tried to go to sleep, but I kept seeing the crash over and over again." Gibbs continued to watch Tony and listened carefully to his ranting, but he stood up to join Tony. As Gibbs approached, Tony's fidgeting increased as he almost felt threated from his approach. Noticing his uneasiness, Gibbs whispered to him.

"I am just listening, Tony." Gibbs said as he came closer. As he continued to stand there, he watched as Tony started to calm and his whole body seemed to relax again. Tony buried his heads into his hands again. As Gibbs continued to watch Tony struggle with this, he wondered if Tony was just having a hard time expressing himself about this in front of him, since Tony views Gibbs as a father figure.

"Whoa, Boss!" Tony jumped and shouted. "I didn't realize that it was 6:30 am already." That comment redirected even Gibbs' attention, since he did not realize that either. "I better go home and get ready for work. I'll see you soon Boss."

"Tony! Why don't you stay home today?" Gibbs tried to catch him before he ran out the door. Tony stopped and turned toward Gibbs.

"I would rather go to work, Boss." Tony explained. " I do not feel that anything has really changed for me here."

"Other than the fact, you got no sleep." Gibbs added. Gibbs watched as he ran to his car. The thought that Tony would most likely find out all the details of the investigation now concerned him, as well as the fact that Tony was struggling to maintain his emotions. Shaking his head, Gibbs dug out Dr. Cranston's number again.

**~This concludes the No Dad. . .Not Again series, but the key story elements will continue. A new season 8/9 focused series will start soon. Thank you so much for reading.**


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